THE BOYCOTT.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 949, 17 October 1910, Page 8

THE BOYCOTT.

GOVERNMENT ADVERTISING METHODS. CRITICISM iti PARLIAMENT. INSTANCES OF POLITICAL FAVOURITISM. "Does-the Government intend to discontinue ; its policy of punishing newspapers ;tliat criticise it adversely by refusing them '-their fair share of State .advertisements?" -..This was a question whicli Sir. Massey (Leader of the Opposition) put to tlio Hon. D. Buddo when tho.'vbto in respect of the State Advertising Department was before the House of Representatives on Friday night. ■

■ The Hon. 1). Buddo said it was impossible to- meet every request for - advertising,- a'nd some general'■ rule must be laid down; and'adhered to; He had put figures before'the House to show 'that advertising was fairly distributed in tlie\cehtres. . The Government was spending a, reasonable, amount iii advertising, j and it . was not fair to expect -it to' spend more. If the Government 'were to-take .away its advertising from one .'paper .; and..give it. to another, the paper, .which Jost 'tlie advertising would be bound toVcomplain'. No good object would j be . obtained : by.; making alterations. Ho ,knew the paper: to which Mr. Massey had been'Teferring. Ithadtobe remembered,. however,', that there .were two ..'older .established papers ' in this fi%'.'''. : '','-Tli«i-''.advertisenieiits.' '-to .these papers still continued, and thoy were pretty evenly; balanced./: - A Dannovirke Boycott. ; :■ ;'Mr.'. Wright (Wellington'. South) said ;that; there.' Werg. originally.-, two, papers at Dannbyirke,' ydiid.' both ■ supported the Government,',.and got Government," advertising,, One of: these Government papers; ;was succeeded by, the'' '.'Evening :News," .which was an Opposition paper,.'but ,it;had -got; no Government, advertising.- ;. It .was,: a - cleat; 'case ,■ of. politicalfavouritism. Cases like';this', gave, rise '•to the uneasyfeeling that'was. now prevailing in/.the matter. Surely, a paper had a,.right.-te its'"own opinions;. How were Opposition papers -.to get for .thoir readers, advertisements relating; toVrailway vtime-tables; which' everybody had, a right to. see;? < The only way was for papers;: which;';:were .boycotted 'to■ pub-' I»h >the) : adyertisements' : 'ai their own cost. ; No matter what Government did that, he would'say; that it ,was not fair. - Tho Hon/ D. Buddo replied; that the , -'Danneyirke News',' - was; started in -. OcWery; 1909; _. It - bought - ; out tlio 'Press," but'it did not . use its. plant., No. additional ■ paper had .'. received Governindnfv..,advertisements; .'.since .July,' 1908. When one began to analyse tho renting "to/ .Government advertising, one could,-get almost anywhere. In, Dunedin, for instance, tlio "Times" .got; advertising last.year worth £696, ■ whilst .the..; advertising to - the "Staj'' totalled 1 only £630.' '. AVhy was this the case?. . .';; V;;.- '■

' Mr.' Hardy:'Oh, the "Star" ; went off the track lately!.' (Laughter.) ■. . . . The '.'Dominion", anrt the "Dairyman," Mf. - Massey; said', that ..the Minister's statements proved absolutely-"nothing. He would not . suggest that'the: expenses of. the Department increased, Mr thai theiadvertising-'shoald be, taken _from ."any paper;. Go vernmeiit ■' adver.■tisemerits.: should be~'given * irrespective of ; the..- political," views, .'oftie - journals',, INo doubt-all the menibers knew of the case of .Tiii! Dominion. -There 'was also the Dannovirko "News." Another paper, .which, was ' penalised was.; the : "Dairymaid"Jliis paper had. on one occasion adversely-Criticised' the Government, and-.-its Government advertis'ing withdrawn ..'inimediately.' : It : was a; singular-fact that all tho. papers were D's, and:-they had all.been, d— —d by the: Government; 'He' regre-ttetj -.that . the' Government had. not submittedin its Teturii--'a ,list ; ofthe amounts paid ;tp''-pap i era'i,.'(iU^de, ; 'New: : &alkhd:.'for. advertising, . r ,

■ -Mr.; Wright; .OYellingtori South) said, 'the djrectors- of the.Dannevirke,"News" paid:- the'(Press" - £1000' for ./its Press •Association;'rights and goodwill. They ; therefor®'# virtually -bought; the' paper for;;£ipoo,- \vithout the; plant.- The fact remained, that- the "News" iii Danne,yrrke; succeeded, the i'.'Press,". and .was immediately boyTOttedl : ; If the ''JPress'.' had. remained in existence,-. it; would have received- the - advertisements. ; ,-. Mi-. Hall asked Mr. Wright/ if. he was''prepared; "to say that tho "Evening News" paid. the "Daily .Press''. £1000, ;as-he'had stated.;; '.

: Sir. ( Wright: Yes, 1 say tlmt. Mr.'Hall: ! have heard a very different.talo to-that. . . . -

"Revolver to its Head."

Mr; * Hal]. went, pn Ito say, that Mr. Wright- had;.evidently .beeiil. ill correspondence -with the' Dan nevirke ; j'iv'r',; ■ 1 ; : ' Mr. -Wright: Tliey - wrote to me. Mr..-..Hall;'remarked that- his experience .of. newspapers ; wa.s much . the -same. all. over;the .couiitry;: -He .was ' not in., correspondence. with any; news- , paper, • but' he. had not- got into Parliament by the'help of any paper- The "News".- was not a continuation of the ■.'"Press.'.'i/^The. 1 "News''-'.liad . gone to the "Press/'and-pract-ically put a revolver to. its head;' and-said,; "Deliver." All the papers 111 the Hawkc's Bay had 'been,■agaiiist''him J ;:,and .lie wished; they' ' would icontiuujei.so. The 11 ' News'' 'had. a nimibe-r of wealthy; people, behind it,, and its lifeylilood !did,-ndt -"idepend- .on , Governmeiit .'advertisemeuts. " '

Mr. Wright said ; the .Government : was. fairly' dividing, the- advertisements : ill many of the plat»s, but that :■ did not\answer; the' question" he had raised :in ; regard : t-o ' the .Dannevirke ' 'News." •Mr.. Hall had ■ said he was in. favour of . giving; '. advertisementsirrespective of political colour, of the.paper. • ':' A Somersault. Mr.; Wright, ;; continuing, said ' that lie (Jlr. flail) had /been, given, a chance tp. vote, recently on motion that' advertisements should be ' given regardless :of the political convictions of the papei-s, and ho had voted against the motionL He (Mr. Wright) was glad if Mr. Hall had altered'his. opinion.. If a paper, was- deserving ; of advertisements by; reason of its circulation the existing - amount of advertising should be divided.Mr. Hall said he deplored the fact that newspaper business / was beiiig brought, before Parliament. The proprietor of the Dannevirke "Press" had to give' up his paper at an amofmt be-' low its value. Mr. Wright was occupying a degrading position in the matter. He '(Mr. Wright) was taking up the position of an advertising agent.- . Mt. Wright declared- that it was Mr. Hall who occupied-a degrading position. He (Mr.-Hall) had said one thing, and had 'voted another way. When the "Nows" had paid £1000 to tlio "Press" it had paid -a tip-lop price. It expected to get)- Government advertising as a part of tho goodwill 'for. wlrich it had paid. The "News" was worthy enough for the Government to subscribe to. Mr. Hall held that it was not a fact that the amount which the "Nows" had paid to the "Press" did not include any amount for plant. He could not find words to describe' his feelings in the matter. How Money is Being Wasted. Mr. Jennings (Taumarunui) said he believed that advertisements should bo given irrespective of political colour. Ho had-known cases whore valuable Crown lands in the King Country had

boon advertised in only one newspaper. There was a great waste : of public matter of ci.rgiuating

dodgers relating to railway trains. The peoplo who took The Dominion or the "Dannovirkc News" had the same right to seo the Government advertisements as the readers of other papers. There was also a great waste of money in regard to the circulation of plans of small sections. He thought that a committee should be set up to see how Government advertising might • best be done.

Mr. Herries (Tauranga) said that the .argument of the Hon. D. Buddo apparently was that the old established papers should get the preference. In the case of Rotorua, however, it would bo found, that'the opposite was : the.' case. There could bo no doubt but that polities came in in that instanco. At Te ArohA the newer paper, which. was a : Government paper, also got more Government advertising than the older paper, which was an Opposition paper. At Opotiki the Government newspaper also got a preference. It' was not the amount, but the principle to which he was alluding. ' •„ )